Maiden Galaxy

The sword-light coiled like a snake, as if it was about to bite Chen Mo, constricting the Northern Dipper staff.

Qing Wan then slashed. Using the Three Star Star Weapon with her Three Flowers Overhead level, her strength was wielded at its limit.

Sword-lights endlessly flew towards Chen Mo, becoming spirit snakes that rose in the wind. Chen Mo used his most basic brute force to ward this attack off. Not a moment later, he already felt drained.

Normal weapons would have already disintegrated under Qing Wan's ferocious assault, but Chen Mo's continued persistence made everyone present completely stunned, endlessly impressed.

The arena was filled with staff-wind and sword-shadow. Atop the observation platform, Qing Yuanshan and the others were increasingly astounded the longer they watched. Slowly spotting that Chen Mo was already restrained by Qing Wan's Green Snake swordsmanship, the stone in Qing Yuanshan's chest finally dropped.

The old man wore a slight grin, picking up a porcelain cup at the edge of the table and taking a sip. This cup that came from Qing Yuanshan's "Rolled Green Robe" of fine teas had already cooled, but a warm scent still poured into his soul, sweeping away all of his exhaustion from the past few days.

No matter what, Qing Wan finally took back a bit of the Qing Family's face.

"Brother Yuanshan, I am truly envious of your Qing Family. To have a genius warrior like Niece Qing Wan." The Shen Family old man sighed.

No matter what the Qing Family had met with in the past, the current Qing Family's head of house, genius Qing Wan, was currently recovering the family's face bit by bit in front of all of Azure Dragon Town's people. The Chen Mo that had defeated the Qing Family already could only defend to no avail under Qing Wan's attack. The spectators could all see that Chen Mo's defeat was only a matter of time.

The Qing Family that had originally been number one noble family had already become a laughingstock. Now, with Qing Wan dominating and pulling so strongly against a crazy tide, this laughingstock had somehow become the envy of the town.

"Not at all, this is the Qing Family's fortune." Qing Yuanshan modestly said. The old man sighed: "These past few days, the Qing Family has met with a chain of blows. All of our burdens were placed on Niece Qing Wan's shoulders. This Old Man was originally still worried whether she could bear them or not."

"I never thought this kind of shock actually could make her mature more quickly. Niece Qing Wan is a genius indeed." The Shen Family old man said in admiration.

"We seniors are all ashamed of our inferiority." Qing Yuanshan laughed. Now that Qing Wan was about to defeat Chen Mo, with the juren token so close before their eyes, his mood was vastly improved.

The Tao Family Head coldly said: "Are you actually not planning on having Qing Wan throw the match, to allow Chen Mo to win?" The man looked at all the warriors down below, his meaning very clear.

A moment ago, these commoner warriors had all made vows of loyalty to Chen Mo should he defeat Qing Wan. If Chen Mo was able to defeat a Three Flowers Overhead, it was hardly an exaggeration to say that Azure Dragon Town would become his domain. According to the doctrine of beneficial interests, the current Qing Family ought to be happy to be defeated.1

"What you see is true skill. If Chen Mo is no match, that is simply to be expected, but to throw the match at this moment, this would make clear that our Qing Family has no good faith. Furthermore, this would presumably an insult to His Highness Chen Mo." Qing Yuanshan disagreed. He had indeed pledged loyalty to Chen Mo, but this was nothing more than a stop-gap measure to avoid the Star General's revenge. In the future, so long as Qing Wan's cultivation had greater breakthroughs, breaking free of Chen Mo's grasp would be something that could happen in seconds.

With the three heads of house discussing so broadly, it seemed that the endgame was at hand.

"Gentleman, it is still quite too soon for you to be happy."

All of a sudden at this moment, a flat voice interrupted their conversation. They looked to see the Wanshou Temple's Monk Guan Jing had already opened his eyes from his meditation. Seeing this monk's qi and blood so mellow, his Essence Qi faintly visible, it seemed he greatly comprehended the Withering Thriving Chan Dharma.

"What does the Great Master mean?" Qing Yuanshan smiled and asked.

"Although His Highness Chen Mo is formidable, he is only Qi And Blood Nine Turns, after all. And Qing Wan even has a Three Star Star Weapon. None of us here could possibly be her opponent." The Shen Family old man explained.

"Gentlemen, you are still blinded by outward appearances." Monk Guan Jing said.

He had come from the esoteric Wanshou Temple. Even if he had Qi And Blood Nine Turns cultivation, he had considerably deep understanding of martial arts levels. Hearing him assert this, Qing Yuanshan, the Shen Family old man, and the Tao Family Head gravely watched the platform.

Atop the ring, Qing Wan's Green Snake swordsmanship seemed to have an abundance of leeway. Each slashing, cutting, collapsing, stabbing, and thrusting motion made Chen Mo only able to dodge all over the place.

Chen Mo relied on that swift and fierce stick to be able to barely ward her off, but this kind of meandering was nothing more than a deathbed struggle. Warriors who had just entered the martial path all understood this logic, and that big stick was very taxing on his stamina and energy to be wielded like that. He was perhaps unable to last much longer. The moment he lost that staff, Chen Mo would lose his support, and his defeat would be inevitable.

"Watch his footwork carefully. He is not randomly running about at all."

Their eyes widened.

Hearing him say this, they finally noticed that Chen Mo was always moving towards Qing Wan's flank, but each step had a particular rhythm. The lines beneath his feet seemed to be carved, slowly taking shape.

Qing Yuanshan bolted up from his seat, his eyes hawk-like, his smile vanishing.

"This is…"

"Bagua!!"

Monk Guan Jing smiled: "His Highness Chen Mo is currently walking the Bagua. I fear this is in preparation for a fatal strike."

"!!"

Qing Wan roared continuously, waving the Green Snake, sword-light surging over the stage like a tidal wave, cutting the framework severely. The girl of outstanding talent could also discern that something was a bit strange with Chen Mo. She clearly had Chen Mo suppressed completely, but she herself seemed to be utterly lost in fog. She was increasingly aware that her attacks were becoming more like threatening gestures, a bluff.

This is bad.

Bagua?

Qing Wan noticed that Chen Mo was currently using the Bagua's body techniques, placing her at the center of the Bagua. The girl's expression chilled. She stopped her sword, and after this instantaneous halt, she suddenly leaned over, sword-qi billowing in waves.

Under this slash, ten thousand swords were released at once. A rain of swords that swallowed the world now attacked Chen Mo.

"Snake Swallows Elephant?"

"To surprisingly combine the Spirit Snake Chant's strongest martial art into her sword technique, she's a genius, a genius." Qing Yuanshan pounded his fist in praise, even more certain of Qing Wan's victory.

When this move was unleashed, no qi and blood warrior in the world could stop it. 

Indeed, the ten thousand sword-light knocked Northern Dipper flying, but at this moment, Chen Mo moved, tracing a flowing line beneath his feet. Bang-bang-bang, bang-bang-bang, he stepped six times, the ground caving in, turning it over and over constantly.

Kun Six Severed.

He passed through Snake Swallows Elephant's sword-qi and reached Qing Wan's side, freely and leisurely before suddenly spinning around, a palm swinging out. His palm-wind was like a cannon, firm and burning hot. Under this palm thrust, a large area seemed to be bombarded by cannonfire, blasting the sword-qi protecting Qing Wan into smithereens.

Li Center Empty.

This violent palm attack had yet to retract when Chen Mo threw his shoulders. The fierce, cannon-like punch instantly became a continuous stream. One fist was hard, the other soft, one pulling and the other receiving, one moving and one remaining still. The center between them resembled nature itself. 

Kan Center Full.

In the blink of an eye, he drew near the girl. Qing Wan's pupils contracted. It was already too late for her to pull back. Chen Mo unleashed his palms, their force like an army of cavalry, unleashed just like Qing Wan's Snake Swallows Elephant sword-qi.

Zhen Upright Basin.

Then, his palms thrust downward, cupped like bowls, Gen Overturned Bowl. Immediately afterwards, he circled around to Qing Wan's front, cutting apart the Green Snake's sword-qi, once again striking the girl's chest.

Xun Lower Broken, Dui Upper Open.

As Chen Mo attacked, everyone thought they saw an illusion, regardless of whether they were the warriors over the platform or the spectators down below.

A figure whose clothes were purer than snow seemed to overlap with Chen Mo's, advancing through this outstanding Bagua masterpiece alongside him.

This shocked everyone.

Finally, Chen Mo stood a meter away in front of the girl.

The Green Snake's myriad sword-qi immediately vanished into thin air following his repose, and everyone clearly saw that the girl's surroundings were carved with uncannily indelible Bagua lines. However, the Bagua was not fully formed. Qian Three Linked was somewhat flawed, but this did not stop everyone from staring slackjawed.

Bagua.

The Bagua seemed to be crafted by the gods, surprisingly containing the same flair as the Bagua from the Book of Changes.

"How could I have lost." The Green Snake sword fell from her hand. Qing Wan's complexion was in agony as she stared blankly at Chen Mo.

"Regardless, you've earned my respect with this fight." Chen Mo nodded in acknowledgement of Qing Wan's strength.

The girl exuded unreconciliation. She wanted to pick up the Star Weapon that had fallen on the floor, the Qing Family's heirloom sword, but when her fingers moved, the qi and blood inside her body seemed to batter her entire body as if overcoming an obstacle. Even her Essence Flower level could hardly be mustered. The girl took several steps forward before her eyes went dark.

Chen Mo stepped forward and let the girl rest against his chest.

He gazed at the girl's complexion, gently stroking her black hair. This was the first time he and Qing Wan had made such intimate body contact. Not so long ago, he was only filled with hate towards the girl. He loathed this mood, but at this moment, looking at her wan face, her tenacity and her powerlessness, the things of the past seemed insignificant.

Chen Mo gently hugged her. There was nothing sentimental between them, but he recognized the girl's strength. If it was not for her overbearing nature, he may not have been able to thoroughly comprehend the Bagua.

You need to be grateful to people who mock you. They will make you even stronger.

That was all.

"Congratulations, Azure Dragon Town's Chen Mo has obtained juren."

The announcer's voice came from the platform, accompanied by endless astonishment.

But all of this was already no longer important.

1. Since the Qing Family is currently under Chen Mo's direct patronage, if he is able to bring all of the town under his control, they would be able to experience the greatest of benefits, being his direct vassals. ↩